Ad Infinitum
by Shu of the Wind
Summary: Gifted to all of those who read Domina Esques. A collection of drabbles and oneshots, canon or wild AU, of all pairings and all characters. Zodiac backgrounds! Omakes! Deleted scenes! The works. Mostly random flights of whimsy.


**Tite:** _Ad Infinitum.  
_**Rating:** T/T+.

**Summary:** Gifted to all of those who read Domina Esques. A collection of drabbles and oneshots (DE canon and AU) of all pairings and all characters. Zodiac backgrounds! Omakes! The works. Mostly random flights of whimsy.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own _Kuroshitsuji_, or any other works of fiction that may be used within the contents of this collection. I do own the original characters.

**Author's Note:** It's been a long time since I looked at _Domina Esques_, nearly a year, and what an eventful year it was. Though it may seem like I'm attempting to kill myself with all the projects I have going currently (and I probably will come to think of it) I'm also in my last semester of uni as of the week after next, and I feel like I kind of need something to let loose with. _Ad Infinitum_ will probably turn out to be that.

There is no set schedule for this collection, and I will take requests. Whether or not I will keep up with those requests in a timely matter is a subject for debate, but I'll try to get to them all.

This collection will include AUs, AU pairings, slash pairings, character backgrounds, sequel bits, random fluff, random angst, and blood, amongst other things. The title of the collection means _Forever, _or _Again and again_, and that's basically what this story is. So. Have fun.

Prompt: _circus_. For the sharp-eyed and wide-read, you will recognize the Cirque from _The Night Circus, _by Erin Morgenstern. (I don't own.) Magical AU. Any French grammatical mistakes are my own.

* * *

The train compartment was hot and sweaty as Elizabeth took a deep breath, and shimmied into her uniform. Long and leggy, it clung to her like a second skin. Good for aerodynamics. Bad for modesty. She zipped up the back, checked her reflection in the mirror, and then ran her fingers one last time through her hair (Paula had offered to do it, and the elegant, half-collapsed updo was perfect for the Romeo and Juliet act she would be doing later) and fixed her mask over her eyes. She was all in red and black, her mask a series of diamonds; her costume was checkered, like a harlequin's. She drew a breath and let it out, pinching her cheeks, fluffing her hair again. Her lipstick was stuck to her teeth. She scrubbed it off with a napkin, and tossed it into the trash.

There was a rap, and then Snake stuck his head into her compartment. He had a half-mask and gloves on, to hide the scales, and his eyes glimmered in the candlelight. "Ready?" he asked, and Elizabeth held out a hand to him. A viper crossed his fingers, wound up her arm, and settled in the hollow of her throat. She stroked Emily, and then took Snake's hand again. His fingers tightened around hers.

"Ready," she said.

They'd set up the Cirque des Rêves in a small clearing outside of Calais, where the train tracks ran through a forest that had been left untouched by time. The moon had set, the customers were coming, and it was time to play their parts. Lizzy tucked herself closer to Snake, slipping an arm around his waist, and he copied her. As the only other person in the troupe who Snake trusted with his serpents, they'd become a walking attraction, wandering the red and black tents with vipers and milk snakes peeping out of collars and sleeves until one of the main events began. Emily ran her snub nose over Elizabeth's jugular vein, and nearby, a woman dressed all in green shuddered and pointed with her fan. Elizabeth leaned closer to Snake, went up on her tiptoes, and whispered, "There aren't many tonight."

"No," he said, his lips barely moving, "but the Comte is coming tonight, I hear."

"The Comte?"

He smiled, and put his lips close to her ear. "The Comte de Fantômes."

"Phantomhive?" she repeated, and her heart skipped a beat in her throat. They had been on a long tour around Europe, from Calais to St. Petersburg and back again, and she hadn't seen Ciel Phantomhive since she'd left him in a party in London to join the Cirque. Elizabeth put a hand up to the snake at her throat, and Emily's tongue flickered against her fingers. "Oh."

"Do you know him?" asked Snake, as they took a turn by the Nightmare Tent. Through the gap in the cloth she could see Sebastian, his arms wide, cloak rippling, as he wove his spells.

"No," said Elizabeth, and left it at that.

The main tent was billowing, already spilling out the sides with people, when Snake and Elizabeth joined the rest of the troupe by the back entrance. Theodore Parker and his sister were practicing their knife magic, flicking blades in and out of visibility. Colleen, the contortionist, was upside-down and backwards, only propped up on one hand and the very tip of her big toe. "Toff," she said, as Lizzy and Snake came forward, and she unfolded herself. "Black's in a right tizzy. Apparently someone he knows is here."

"The Comte," said Elizabeth, "I know," and Snake slipped away from her to go stand near Finny the strong man and Maylene the sharpshooter. Paula, the stage manager, was ticking their names off on her roster, and she waggled her fingers at Elizabeth, who waved back. She'd brought Paula with her from London, and despite everything, the woman had stuck with her. She put a hand up to her throat, winding Emily around her fingers, and drew the snake away from her neck. "Sebastian will be furious if we make a mistake tonight."

Colleen scoffed. "We never make mistakes."

"Regardless." She waved a hand at that. "The Comte is our biggest sponsor. Be careful. ", and out of the corner of her eye she saw Theo wrinkle his nose. They'd picked up Theo and Felicity in Vienna, a pair of street performers very far from home "We need to stay focused."

"Yes, _mum_," said Colleen, and did a handspring to get away from her. Snake came close, and Elizabeth let Emily slide from her hand to his again, a whisper of magic between her fingers.

Elizabeth peeked into the tent. Sebastian was starting his announcements. "_Mesdames et Messieurs, bienvenue au Cirque des Rêves! Tout d'abord_—"

"We're up," said Theodore. Felicity threw a knife up into the air, and it vanished against the stars. Elizabeth looked up at him, frowning a little.

"Don't show off just because Ciel is here, Theo."

"Wouldn't dream of it, darlin' partner mine," said Theodore. His eyes fairly snapped sparks through his mask. Lizzy tugged at his hand, and he bent down and pressed his cheek to hers, a gesture of good luck that they always did. In the tent, she could hear Sebastian. "_Dame de l'air, Elizabet, et son partenaire—_"

"Don't drop me," she said.

"Never would," he replied, and then they were through into the big top, and the crowd was screaming, and she could feel Ciel's eyes on her.

Elizabeth leapt up into the air, propelled from the ground like a springboard through a mix of her magic and Theodore's, and the wind whipped her breath away.


End file.
